BEIJING, Jan. 22 (Xinhua) -- China recorded a total of 5.615 billion domestic travel trips in 2024, marking a 14.8-percent increase from the previous year, according to the Ministry of Culture and Tourism on Wednesday.

Domestic travelers spent over 5.75 trillion yuan (about 790 billion U.S. dollars) during the year, up by 17.1 percent from 2023, the ministry said.

Meanwhile, lower-tier regions with airports have become increasingly popular among Chinese travelers, said Lu Wei, a researcher at the Chinese Academy of Macroeconomic Research.

With improved infrastructure making various regions and lesser-known destinations more accessible, the shift toward off-the-beaten-path travel has gained momentum, drawing travelers in search of niche experiences.

Beyond the hustle and bustle of the domestic travel market, international travel also flourished last year, with a boom in both inbound and outbound tourism.

China continued to ease its visa policies in 2024 to boost openness and people-to-people exchanges, allowing more foreign travelers and businesspeople to visit the country visa-free.

The latest data proves that the relaxation of its visa policies has delivered visible results. The National Immigration Administration (NIA) said earlier this month that cross-border trips made by foreigners surged 82.9 percent from a year ago to 64.88 million in 2024.

More than 20 million inbound foreign trips were made visa-free, a year-on-year increase of 112.3 percent, according to the NIA.